Thin film deposition apparatus

ABSTRACT

A thin film deposition apparatus that forms a thin film on a substrate includes: a deposition source that discharges a deposition material; a deposition source nozzle unit that is disposed at a side of the deposition source and includes a plurality of deposition source nozzles; a patterning slit sheet that is disposed opposite to the deposition source nozzle unit and includes a plurality of patterning slits; and a blocking member that is disposed between the substrate and the deposition source, wherein the thin film deposition apparatus is separated from the substrate by a predetermined distance, the substrate is moved relative to the thin film deposition apparatus, and the blocking member is moved along with the substrate to screen at least one portion of the substrate.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application claims the benefit of Korean Application Nos.10-2009-0081979, filed on Sep. 1, 2009 and 10-2010-0014276, filed onFeb. 17, 2010, in the Korean Intellectual Property Office, thedisclosures of which are incorporated herein by reference.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

1. Field of the Invention

Aspects of the present invention relates to a thin film depositionapparatus, and more particularly, to a thin film deposition apparatusthat can be simply applied to manufacture thin films on the substrate ona mass scale and that improves manufacturing yield.

2. Description of the Related Art

Organic light-emitting display devices have a larger viewing angle,better contrast characteristics, and a faster response rate than otherdisplay devices, and thus have drawn attention as a next-generationdisplay device.

In general, organic light-emitting display devices have a stackedstructure including an anode, a cathode, and an emission layerinterposed between the anode and the cathode, and display images incolor when holes and electrons, injected respectively from the anode andthe cathode, recombine in the emission layer such that light is emitted.However, it is difficult to achieve high light-emission efficiency withsuch a structure, and thus intermediate layers, including an electroninjection layer, an electron transport layer, a hole transport layer, ahole injection layer, etc., may be additionally interposed between theemission layer and one or both of the electrodes.

Also, it is very difficult in practice to form fine patterns in organicthin films such as the emission layer and the intermediate layers, andred, green, and blue light-emission efficiency varies according tocharacteristics of the organic thin films. For these reasons, it is noteasy to form an organic thin film pattern on a large substrate, such asa mother glass having a size of 5G or more, by using a conventional thinfilm deposition apparatus, and thus it is difficult to manufacture largeorganic light-emitting display devices having satisfactory drivingvoltage, current density, brightness, color purity, light-emissionefficiency, life-span characteristics. Thus, there is a desire forimprovement in this regard.

An organic light-emitting display device includes intermediate layers,including an emission layer disposed between a first electrode and asecond electrode that are arranged opposite to each other. Theelectrodes and the intermediate layers may be formed by using variousmethods, one of which is a deposition method. When an organiclight-emitting display device is manufactured by using the depositionmethod, a fine metal mask (FMM) having the same pattern as a thin filmto be formed is disposed to closely contact a substrate, and a thin filmmaterial is deposited over the FMM in order to form the thin film havingthe desired pattern.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

Aspects of the present invention provides a thin film depositionapparatus that may be easily manufactured, that may be simply applied tomanufacture thin films on the substrate on a mass scale, that improvesmanufacturing yield and deposition efficiency, and that allows depositedmaterials to be reused.

According to an aspect of the present invention, there is provided athin film deposition apparatus that forms a thin film on a substrate,the apparatus including: a deposition source that discharges adeposition material; a deposition source nozzle unit that is disposed ata side of the deposition source and includes a plurality of depositionsource nozzles arranged in a first direction; a patterning slit sheetthat is disposed opposite to the deposition source nozzle unit andincludes a plurality of patterning slits arranged in the firstdirection; a barrier plate assembly that is disposed between thedeposition source nozzle unit and, and includes a plurality of barrierplates in the first direction that partition a space between thedeposition source nozzle unit and the patterning slit sheet into aplurality of sub-deposition spaces; and a blocking member that isdisposed between the substrate and the deposition source and that isspaced apart from the substrate, wherein the thin film depositionapparatus is spaced apart from the substrate by a predetermineddistance, the substrate and the thin film deposition apparatus moverelative to each other, and when the substrate and the thin filmdepositon apparatus are moved relative to each other, the blockingmember is moved along with the substrate to be positioned to screen atleast one portion of the substrate.

According to a non-limiting aspect, the blocking member may screen anon-deposition region of the substrate.

According to a non-limiting aspect, the blocking member may screen edgesof the substrate.

According to a non-limiting aspect, the blocking member may bepositioned to move between the barrier plate assembly and the patternslit sheet.

According to a non-limiting aspect, the blocking member may include afirst blocking member that screens a first non-deposition region formedat a first end of the substrate and a second blocking member thatscreens a second non-deposition region formed at a second end of thesubstrate.

According to a non-limiting aspect, the first and second blockingmembers may have a flat plate shape.

According to a non-limiting aspect, the first and second blockingmembers may be moved along with the substrate such that the firstblocking member is disposed to block deposition on the firstnon-deposition region, and the second blocking member is disposed toblock deposition on the second non-deposition region.

According to a non-limiting aspect, the first and second blockingmembers may be moved at the same speed as that of the substrate.

According to a non-limiting aspect, positions of the first and secondblocking members with respect to the substrate may be constantlymaintained.

According to a non-limiting aspect, the first and second blockingmembers may have a U-shaped cross-section.

According to a non-limiting aspect, one of the first and second blockingmembers may have a U-shaped cross-section, and the other of the firstand second blocking members may have an L-shaped cross-section.

According to a non-limiting aspect, the first and second blockingmembers may overlap with each other when deposition is not beingperformed on the substrate.

According to a non-limiting aspect, the first and second blockingmembers may be moved along with the substrate such that the firstblocking member screens the first non-deposition region while the firstblocking member is moved between the blocking plate assembly and thepatterning slit sheet, and the second blocking member screens the secondnon-deposition region while the second blocking member is moved betweenthe blocking plate assembly and the patterning slit sheet.

According to a non-limiting aspect, the first blocking member may bemoved at the same speed as that of the substrate while the firstblocking member is moved between the barrier plate assembly and thepatterning slit sheet, and the second blocking member may be moved atthe same speed as that of the substrate while the second blocking memberis moved between the barrier plate assembly and the patterning slitsheet.

According to a non-limiting aspect, t position of the first blockingmember with respect to the substrate may be constantly maintained whilethe first blocking member is moved between the barrier plate assemblyand the patterning slit sheet, and a position of the second blockingmember with respect to the substrate may be constantly maintained whilethe second blocking member is moved between the barrier plate assemblyand the patterning slit sheet.

According to a non-limiting aspect, the patterning slit sheet may besmaller than the substrate.

According to a non-limiting aspect, each of the plurality of barrierplates may extend in a second direction that is substantiallyperpendicular to the first direction.

According to a non-limiting aspect, each of the barrier plate assembliesmay include a first barrier plate assembly including a plurality offirst barrier plates, and a second barrier plate assembly including aplurality of second barrier plates.

According to a non-limiting aspect, the deposition material contained inthe deposition source of thin film deposition apparatus may becontinuously deposited on the substrate while the substrate is movedrelative to the thin film deposition apparatus.

According to a non-limiting aspect, the thin film deposition apparatusor the substrate may move relative to each other along a plane parallelto a surface of the substrate on which the deposition materials aredeposited.

According to an aspect of the present invention, there is provided athin film deposition apparatus for forming a thin film on a substrate,the apparatus including: a deposition source that discharges adeposition material; a deposition source nozzle unit that is disposed ata side of the deposition source and includes a plurality of depositionsource nozzles arranged in a first direction; a patterning slit sheetthat is disposed opposite to the deposition source nozzle unit andincludes a plurality of patterning slits arranged in a second directionperpendicular to the first direction; and a blocking member that isdisposed between the substrate and the deposition source, wherein adeposition is performed while the substrate and the thin film depositionapparatus move relative to each other in the first direction, thedeposition source, the deposition source nozzle unit, and the patterningslit sheet are formed integrally with each other, and when a depositionis performed, the blocking member moves along with the substrate to bepositioned to screen at least one portion of the substrate.

According to a non-limiting aspect, the blocking member may screen anon-deposition region of the substrate.

According to a non-limiting aspect, the blocking member may screen edgesof the substrate.

According to a non-limiting aspect, the blocking member may bepositioned to move between the barrier plate assembly and the patternslit sheet.

According to a non-limiting aspect, the blocking member may include afirst blocking member that screens a first non-deposition region formedat a first end of the substrate and a second blocking member thatscreens a second non-deposition region formed at a second end of thesubstrate.

According to a non-limiting aspect, the first and second blockingmembers may have a flat plate shape.

According to a non-limiting aspect, the first and second blockingmembers may be moved along with the substrate such that the firstblocking member is disposed to block deposition on the firstnon-deposition region, and the second blocking member may be disposed toblock deposition on the second non-deposition region.

According to a non-limiting aspect, the first and second blockingmembers may be moved at the same speed as that of the substrate.

According to a non-limiting aspect, positions of the first and secondblocking members with respect to the substrate may be constantlymaintained.

According to a non-limiting aspect, the first and second blockingmembers may have a U-shaped cross-section.

According to a non-limiting aspect, one of the first and second blockingmembers may have a U-shaped cross-section, and the other of the firstand second blocking members may have an L-shaped cross-section.

According to a non-limiting aspect, the first and second blockingmembers may be overlap with each other when deposition is not beingperformed on the substrate.

According to a non-limiting aspect, the first and second blockingmembers may be moved along with the substrate such that the firstblocking member screens the first non-deposition region while the firstblocking member is moved between the blocking plate assembly and thepatterning slit sheet, and the second blocking member may screen thesecond non-deposition region while the second blocking member is movedbetween the blocking plate assembly and the patterning slit sheet.

According to a non-limiting aspect, the first blocking member may bemoved at the same speed as that of the substrate while the firstblocking member is moved between the barrier plate assembly and thepatterning slit sheet, and the second blocking member may be moved atthe same speed as that of the substrate while the second blocking memberis moved between the barrier plate assembly and the patterning slitsheet.

According to a non-limiting aspect, a position of the first blockingmember with respect to the substrate may be constantly maintained whilethe first blocking member is moved between the barrier plate assemblyand the patterning slit sheet, and a position of the second blockingmember with respect to the substrate may be constantly maintained whilethe second blocking member is moved between the barrier plate assemblyand the patterning slit sheet.

According to a non-limiting aspect, the deposition source and thedeposition source nozzle unit, and the patterning slit sheet may beconnected to each other by a connection member.

According to a non-limiting aspect, the connection member may guidemovement of the discharged deposition material.

According to a non-limiting aspect, the connection member may seal aspace between the deposition source and the deposition source nozzleunit, and the patterning slit sheet.

According to a non-limiting aspect, the thin film deposition apparatusmay be spaced apart from the substrate by a predetermined distance.

According to a non-limiting aspect, the deposition material dischargedfrom the thin film deposition apparatus may be continuously deposited onthe substrate while the substrate is moved relative to the thin filmdeposition apparatus in the first direction.

According to a non-limiting aspect, the patterning slit sheet of thethin film deposition apparatus may be smaller than the substrate.

According to a non-limiting aspect, the plurality of deposition sourcenozzles may be tilted at a predetermined angle.

According to a non-limiting aspect, the plurality of deposition sourcenozzles may include deposition source nozzles arranged in two rowsarranged in the first direction, and the deposition source nozzles ineach of the two rows may be tilted at the predetermined angle toward acorresponding deposition source nozzle of the other of the two rows.

According to a non-limiting aspect, the plurality of deposition sourcenozzles may include deposition source nozzles arranged in two rowsformed in the first direction, the deposition source nozzles arranged ina row located at a first side of the patterning slit sheet may bearranged to face a second side of the patterning slit sheet, and thedeposition source nozzles arranged in the other row located at thesecond side of the patterning slit sheet may be arranged to face thefirst side of the patterning slit sheet.

According to another aspect of the present invention, a thin filmdeposition apparatus that forms a thin film on a substrate includes adeposition source that discharges a deposition material; a patterningslit sheet that is disposed opposite to and spaced apart from thedeposition source and comprises a plurality of patterning slits arrangedin the first direction through which the deposition material travels tobe deposited on the substrate; a blocking member that is positionedbetween the substrate and the deposition source to screen anon-deposition region of the substrate, wherein the substrate and thethin film deposition apparatus move relative to each other during adeposition process, and wherein when the substrate and the thin filmdeposition apparatus are moved relative to each other during thedeposition process, the blocking member is moved between the depositionsource and the patterning slit sheet to maintain a screening positionwith respect to the non-deposition region of the substrate

Additional aspects and/or advantages of the invention will be set forthin part in the description which follows and, in part, will be obviousfrom the description, or may be learned by practice of the invention.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

These and/or other aspects and advantages of the invention will becomeapparent and more readily appreciated from the following description ofthe embodiments, taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings ofwhich:

FIG. 1 is a schematic perspective view of a thin film depositionapparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 2 is a schematic side view of the thin film deposition apparatus ofFIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a schematic plan view of the thin film deposition apparatus ofFIG. 1;

FIG. 4A is a schematic view illustrating deposition of a depositionmaterial in the thin film deposition apparatus of FIG. 1;

FIG. 4B illustrates a shadow zone of a thin film deposited on asubstrate when a deposition space is partitioned by barrier plates, asillustrated in FIG. 4A;

FIG. 4C illustrates a shadow zone of a thin film deposited on thesubstrate when the deposition space is not partitioned;

FIGS. 5A to 5D are schematic views illustrating a method ofmanufacturing an organic light-emitting display device using the thinfilm deposition apparatus of FIG. 1;

FIGS. 6A to 6D are schematic views illustrating a method ofmanufacturing an organic light-emitting display device using a thin filmdeposition apparatus according to modification of the currentembodiment;

FIG. 7 is a schematic perspective view of a thin film depositionapparatus according to another embodiment of the present invention; and

FIG. 8 is a cross-sectional view of an organic light-emitting displaydevice manufactured by using a thin film deposition apparatus accordingto an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 9 is a schematic perspective view of a thin film depositionapparatus according to another embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 10 is a schematic side view of the thin film deposition apparatusof FIG. 9;

FIG. 11 is a schematic plan view of the thin film deposition apparatusof FIG. 9;

FIG. 12 is a schematic perspective view of a thin film depositionapparatus according to another embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 13 is a graph schematically illustrating a distribution pattern ofa deposition film formed on a substrate when a deposition source nozzleis not tilted, in a thin film deposition apparatus according to anembodiment of the present invention; and

FIG. 14 is a graph schematically illustrating a distribution pattern ofa deposition film formed on a substrate when a deposition source nozzleis tilted, in a thin film deposition apparatus according to anembodiment of the present invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE EMBODIMENTS

Reference will now be made in detail to the present embodiments of thepresent invention, examples of which are illustrated in the accompanyingdrawings, wherein like reference numerals refer to the like elementsthroughout. The embodiments are described below in order to explain theaspects of the present invention by referring to the figures.

FIG. 1 is a schematic perspective view of a thin film depositionapparatus 100 according to an embodiment of the present invention, FIG.2 is a schematic side view of the thin film deposition apparatus 100,and FIG. 3 is a schematic plan view of the thin film depositionapparatus 100.

Referring to FIGS. 1, 2 and 3, the thin film deposition apparatus 100according to the current embodiment of the present invention includes adeposition source 110, a deposition source nozzle unit 120, a barrierplate assembly 130, a patterning slit sheet 150, and first and secondblocking members 161 and 162.

Although a chamber is not illustrated in FIGS. 1, 2 and 3 forconvenience of explanation, all the components of the thin filmdeposition apparatus 100 may be disposed within a chamber that ismaintained at an appropriate degree of vacuum. The chamber is maintainedat an appropriate vacuum in order to allow a deposition material to movein a straight direction.

In particular, in order to deposit a deposition material 115 that isemitted from the deposition source 110 and is discharged through thedeposition source nozzle unit 120 and the patterning slit sheet 150,onto a substrate 400 in a desired pattern, it is desirable to maintain achamber (not shown) in a high-vacuum state as in a deposition methodusing a fine metal mask (FMM). In addition, the temperatures of barrierplates 131 and the patterning slit sheet 150 may be sufficiently lowerthan the temperature of the deposition source 110. In this regard, thetemperatures of the barrier plates 131 and the patterning slit sheet 150may be about 100° C. or less, since the deposition material 115 that hascollided against the barrier plates 131 does not become vaporized againwhen the temperature of the barrier plates 131 is sufficiently low. Inaddition, thermal expansion of the patterning slit sheet 150 may beminimized when the temperature of the patterning slit sheet 150 issufficiently low. The barrier plate assembly 130 faces the depositionsource 110 which is at a high temperature. In addition, the temperatureof a portion of the barrier plate assembly 130 close to the depositionsource 110 may rise by a maximum of about 167° C., and thus apartial-cooling apparatus may be further included if needed. To thisend, the barrier plate assembly 130 may include a cooling member.

The substrate 400, which constitutes a deposition target on which adeposition material 115 is to be deposited, is disposed in the chamber.The substrate 400 may be a substrate for flat panel displays. A largesubstrate, such as a mother glass, for manufacturing a plurality of flatpanel displays, may be used as the substrate 400. Other substrates mayalso be employed.

In the current embodiment of the present invention, deposition may beperformed while the substrate 400 or the thin film deposition apparatus100 is moved relative to each other. Herein, where it is stated that thesubstrate and thin film deposition assembly are moved relative to eachother, it is to be understood that such statement encompasses anembodiment in which only the substrate is moved and the thin filmdeposition assembly remains stationary, an embodiment in which only thethin film deposition assembly is moved and the substrate remainsstationary and an embodiment in which both the thin film depositionassembly and the substrate are moved.

In particular, in the conventional FMM deposition method, the size ofthe FMM is typically greater than or equal to the size of a substrate.Thus, the size of the FMM has to be increased when performing depositionon a larger substrate. However, it is difficult to manufacture a largeFMM and to extend an FMM to be accurately aligned with a pattern.

In order to overcome this problem, in the thin film deposition apparatus100 according to the current embodiment of the present invention,deposition may be performed while the thin film deposition apparatus 100and the substrate 400 are moved relative to each other. In other words,deposition may be continuously performed while the substrate 400, whichis disposed such as to face the thin film deposition apparatus 100, ismoved in a Y-axis direction. That is, deposition is performed in ascanning manner while the substrate 400 is moved in a direction of arrowA in FIG. 1. Although the substrate 400 is illustrated as being moved inthe Y-axis direction in FIG. 3 when deposition is performed, the presentinvention is not limited thereto. Deposition may be performed while thethin film deposition apparatus 100 is moved in the Y-axis direction,while the substrate 400 is held in a fixed position.

Thus, in the thin film deposition apparatus 100 according to the currentembodiment of the present invention, the patterning slit sheet 150 maybe significantly smaller than an FMM used in a conventional depositionmethod. In other words, in the thin film deposition apparatus 100according to the current embodiment of the present invention, depositionis continuously performed, i.e., in a scanning manner, while thesubstrate 400 is moved in the Y-axis direction. Thus, lengths of thepatterning slit sheet 150 in the X-axis and Y-axis directions may besignificantly less than the lengths of the substrate 400 in the X-axisand Y-axis directions. As described above, since the patterning slitsheet 150 may be formed to be significantly smaller than an FMM used ina conventional deposition method, it is relatively easy to manufacturethe patterning slit sheet 150 used in embodiments of the presentinvention. In other words, using the patterning slit sheet 150, which issmaller than an FMM used in a conventional deposition method, is moreconvenient in all processes, including etching and subsequent otherprocesses, such as precise extension, welding, moving, and cleaningprocesses, compared to the conventional deposition method using thelarger FMM. This is more advantageous for manufacturing a relativelylarge display device.

In order to perform deposition while the thin film deposition apparatus100 and the substrate 400 are moved relative to each other as describedabove, the thin film deposition apparatus 100 and the substrate 400 maybe separated from each other by a predetermined distance. This will bedescribed later in detail.

The deposition source 110 that contains and heats the depositionmaterial 115 is disposed in the chamber at a side of the thin filmdeposition assembly 100 that is opposite to and spaced apart from thesubstrate 400. As the deposition material 115 contained in thedeposition source 110 is vaporized, the deposition material 115 isdeposited on the substrate 400.

In particular, the deposition source 110 includes a crucible 111 that isfilled with the deposition material 115, and a heater 112 that heats thecrucible 111 to vaporize the deposition material 115, which is containedin the crucible 111. The vaporized deposition material 115 travels fromthe crucible 111 towards the deposition source nozzle unit 120.

The deposition source nozzle unit 120 is disposed at a side of thedeposition source 110, and in particular, at the side of the depositionsource 110 facing the substrate 400. The deposition source nozzle unit120 includes a plurality of deposition source nozzles 121 arranged atequal intervals in the X-axis direction. The deposition material 115that is vaporized in the deposition source 110, passes through thedeposition source nozzle unit 120 towards the substrate 400.

The barrier plate assembly 130 is disposed at a side of the depositionsource nozzle unit 120. The barrier plate assembly 130 includes aplurality of barrier plates 131, and a barrier plate frame 132 thatcovers sides of the barrier plates 131. The plurality of barrier plates131 may be arranged parallel to each other at equal intervals in X-axisdirection. In addition, each of the barrier plates 131 may be arrangedparallel to an YZ plane in FIG. 3, i.e., perpendicular to X-axisdirection. The plurality of barrier plates 131 arranged as describedabove partition the space between the deposition source nozzle unit 120and the patterning slit sheet 150 into a plurality of sub-depositionspaces S. In the thin film deposition apparatus 100 according to thecurrent embodiment of the present invention, the deposition space isdivided by the barrier plates 131 into the sub-deposition spaces S thatrespectively correspond to the deposition source nozzles 121 throughwhich the deposition material 115 is discharged, as shown in FIG. 3.

The barrier plates 131 may be respectively disposed between adjacentdeposition source nozzles 121. In other words, each of the depositionsource nozzles 121 may be disposed between two adjacent barrier plates131. The deposition source nozzles 121 may be respectively located atthe midpoint between two adjacent barrier plates 131. As describedabove, since the barrier plates 131 partition the space between thedeposition source nozzle unit 120 and the patterning slit sheet 150 intothe plurality of sub-deposition spaces S, the deposition material 115discharged through each of the deposition source nozzles 121 is notmixed with the deposition material 115 discharged through the otherdeposition source nozzles slits 121, and passes through patterning slits151 so as to be deposited on the substrate 400. In other words, thebarrier plates 131 guide the deposition material 115, which isdischarged through the deposition source nozzles 121, to move straight,not to flow in the (X-axis direction).

As described above, the deposition material 115 is forced to movestraight by the presence of the barrier plates 131, so that a smallershadow zone may be formed on the substrate 400 compared to a case whereno barrier plates are installed. Thus, the thin film depositionapparatus 100 and the substrate 400 can be separated from each other bya predetermined distance. This will be described later in detail.

The barrier plate frame 132, which forms upper and lower sides of thebarrier plates 131, maintains the positions of the barrier plates 131,and guides the deposition material 115, which is discharged through thedeposition source nozzles 121, not to flow beyond the boundaries of thebarrier wall assembly 130 in the Y-axis direction.

Although the deposition source nozzle unit 120 and the barrier plateassembly 130 are illustrated as being separated from each other by apredetermined distance, the present invention is not limited thereto. Inorder to prevent the heat emitted from the deposition source 110 frombeing conducted to the barrier plate assembly 130, the deposition sourcenozzle unit 120 and the barrier plate assembly 130 may be spaced apartfrom each other by a predetermined distance. Alternatively, if a heatinsulator is disposed between the deposition source nozzle unit 120 andthe barrier plate assembly 130, the deposition source nozzle unit 120and the barrier plate assembly 130 may be joined together with the heatinsulator therebetween.

In addition, the barrier plate assembly 130 may be constructed to bedetachable from the thin film deposition apparatus 100. A conventionalFMM deposition method has low deposition efficiency. Herein, depositionefficiency refers to the ratio of the amount of deposition materialdeposited on a substrate to the amount of deposition material vaporizedfrom a deposition source. The conventional FMM deposition method has adeposition efficiency of about 32%. Furthermore, in the conventional FMMdeposition method, about 68% of organic deposition material, which hasnot been deposited on the substrate, remains adhered to a depositionapparatus, and thus it is difficult to reuse the deposition material.

In order to overcome these problems, in the thin film depositionapparatus 100 according to the current embodiment of the presentinvention, the deposition space is enclosed by using the barrier plateassembly 130, so that the vaporized deposition material 115 that is notdeposited on the substrate 400 is mostly deposited within the barrierplate assembly 130. Thus, since the barrier plate assembly 130 isconstructed to be detachable from the thin film deposition apparatus100, when a large amount of the deposition material 115 is present onthe barrier plate assembly 130 after a long deposition process, thebarrier plate assembly 130 may be detached from the thin film depositionapparatus 100 and then placed in a separate deposition materialrecycling apparatus in order to recover the deposition material 115. Dueto the structure of the thin film deposition apparatus 100 according tothe present embodiment, a reuse rate of the deposition material 115 isincreased, so that the deposition efficiency is improved, and thus, themanufacturing costs are reduced.

The patterning slit sheet 150 and a frame 155 in which the patterningslit sheet 150 is bound are disposed between the deposition source 110and the substrate 400. The frame 155 may be formed in a lattice shape,similar to a window frame. The patterning slit sheet 150 is bound insidethe frame 155. The patterning slit sheet 150 includes a plurality ofpatterning slits 151 arranged in the X-axis direction. The depositionmaterial 115 that is vaporized in the deposition source 110, passesthrough the deposition source nozzle unit 120 and the patterning slitsheet 150 towards the substrate 400. The patterning slit sheet 150 maybe manufactured by etching, which is the same method as used in aconventional method of manufacturing an FMM, and in particular, astriped FMM.

In the thin film deposition apparatus 100 according to the currentembodiment of the present invention, the total number of patterningslits 151 may be greater than the total number of deposition sourcenozzles 121. In addition, there may be a greater number of patterningslits 151 than deposition source nozzles 121 disposed between twoadjacent barrier plates 131.

In other words, at least one deposition source nozzle 121 may bedisposed between each two adjacent barrier plates 131. Meanwhile, aplurality of patterning slits 151 may be disposed between each twoadjacent barrier plates 131. The space between the deposition sourcenozzle unit 120 and the patterning slit sheet 150 is partitioned by thebarrier plates 131 into sub-deposition spaces S that correspond to thedeposition source nozzles 121, respectively. Thus, the depositionmaterial 115 discharged from each of the deposition source nozzles 121passes through a plurality of patterning slits 151 disposed in thesub-deposition space S corresponding to the deposition source nozzle121, and is then deposited on the substrate 400.

The first and second blocking members 161 and 162 are disposed betweenthe barrier plate assembly 130 and the patterning slit sheet 150. In thethin film deposition apparatus according to the current embodiment ofthe present invention, the first and second blocking members 161 and 162are disposed to move along with the substrate 400 and screen first andsecond non-deposition regions 401 and 402 of the substrate 400 so thatan deposition material 115 is prevented from being deposited on thefirst and second non-deposition regions 401 and 402 of the substrate400. This will be described later in detail with reference to FIGS. 5Ato 5D.

The barrier plate assembly 130 and the patterning slit sheet 150 may beformed to be spaced apart from each other by a predetermined distance.Alternatively, the barrier plate assembly 130 and the patterning slitsheet 150 may be connected by a connection member 135. The temperatureof the barrier plate assembly 130 may increase to 100° C. or higher dueto exposure to the deposition source 110, which has a high temperature.Thus, in order to prevent the heat of the barrier plate assembly 130from being conducted to the patterning slit sheet 150, the barrier plateassembly 130 and the patterning slit sheet 150 may be spaced apart fromeach other by a predetermined distance.

As described above, the thin film deposition apparatus 100 according tothe current embodiment of the present invention performs depositionwhile being moved relative to the substrate 400. In order for the thinfilm deposition apparatus 100 to be movable relative to the substrate400, the patterning slit sheet 150 is spaced apart from the substrate400 by a predetermined distance. In addition, in order to prevent theformation of a relatively large shadow zone on the substrate 400 whenthe patterning slit sheet 150 and the substrate 400 are separated fromeach other, the barrier plates 131 are arranged between the depositionsource nozzle unit 120 and the patterning slit sheet 150 to force thedeposition material 115 to move in a straight direction. Thus, the sizeof the shadow zone formed on the substrate 400 is sharply reduced.

In particular, in a conventional deposition method using an FMM,deposition is performed with the FMM in close contact with a substratein order to prevent formation of a shadow zone on the substrate.However, when the FMM is used in close contact with the substrate, thecontact may cause defects. In addition, in the conventional depositionmethod, the size of the mask has to be the same as the size of thesubstrate since the mask cannot be moved relative to the substrate.Thus, the size of the mask has to be increased as display devices becomelarger. However, it is not easy to manufacture such a large mask.

In order to overcome this and/or other problems, in the thin filmdeposition apparatus 100 according to the current embodiment of thepresent invention, the patterning slit sheet 150 is disposed to beseparated from the substrate 400 by a predetermined distance. Shadowzones on the substrate 400 are minimized by installing the barrierplates 131.

As described above, according to aspects of the present invention, amask is formed to be smaller than a substrate, and deposition isperformed while the mask is moved relative to the substrate. Thus, themask can be easily manufactured. In addition, defects caused due to thecontact between a substrate and an FMM, which occurs in the conventionaldeposition method, may be prevented. Furthermore, since it isunnecessary to use the FMM in close contact with the substrate during adeposition process, the manufacturing speed may be improved.

Hereinafter, the size of a shadow zone formed on a substrate whenbarrier plates are installed and the size of a shadow zone formed on asubstrate when no barrier plates are installed are compared.

FIG. 4A is a schematic view illustrating deposition of a depositionmaterial in the thin film deposition apparatus of FIG. 1. FIG. 4Billustrates a shadow zone of a thin film deposited on a substrate when adeposition space is partitioned by barrier plates, as illustrated inFIG. 4A. FIG. 4C illustrates a shadow zone of a thin film deposited onthe substrate when the deposition space is not partitioned.

Referring to FIG. 4A, the deposition material 115 that is vaporized inthe deposition source 110 is deposited on the substrate 400 by beingdischarged through the deposition source nozzle unit 120 and thepatterning slit sheet 150. Since the space between the deposition sourcenozzle unit 120 and the patterning slit sheet 150 is partitioned into aplurality of sub-deposition spaces S by the barrier plates 131, thedeposition material 115 discharged through each of the deposition sourcenozzles 121 is not mixed with the deposition material 115 dischargedthrough the other adjacent deposition source nozzles 121 due to thebarrier plates 131.

When the space between the deposition source nozzle unit 120 and thepatterning slit sheet 150 is partitioned by the barrier plate assembly130, as illustrated in FIGS. 4A and 4B, a width SH₁ of a shadow zoneformed on the substrate 400 may be determined using Equation 1 below.

SH ₁ =s*d _(s) /h   [Equation 1]

where s denotes a distance between the patterning slit sheet 150 and thesubstrate 400, d_(s) denotes a width of each of the deposition sourcenozzles 121, and h denotes a distance between the deposition source 110and the patterning slit sheet 150.

However, when the space between the deposition source nozzle unit 120and the patterning slit sheet 150 is not partitioned by the barrierplates 131, as illustrated in FIG. 4C, the deposition material 115 isdischarged through the patterning slit sheet 150 in a wider range ofangles than in the case of FIG. 4B. This is because the depositionmaterial 115 discharged not just through a deposition source nozzle 121directly facing a patterning slit 151 but also through deposition sourcenozzles 121 other than the deposition source nozzle 121 above, passesthrough the patterning slit 151 above and is then deposited on thesubstrate 400. Thus, a width SH₂ of a shadow zone formed on thesubstrate 400 is much greater than when the deposition space ispartitioned by the barrier plates 131. The width SH₂ of the shadow zoneformed on the substrate 400 is determined using Equation 2.

SH ₂ =s*2d/h   [Equation 2]

where s denotes a distance between the patterning slit sheet 150 and thesubstrate 400, d denotes an interval between adjacent barrier plates131, and h denotes a distance between the deposition source 110 and thepatterning slit sheet 150.

Referring to Equations 1 and 2, d_(s), which is the width of each of thedeposition source nozzles 121, is a few to tens times less than d, whichis the interval between the adjacent barrier plates 131, and thus theshadow zone may have a smaller width when the space between thedeposition source nozzle unit 120 and the patterning slit sheet 150 ispartitioned by the barrier plates 131. The width SH₂ of the shadow zoneformed on the substrate 400 may be reduced by either one of thefollowing: (1) by reducing the interval d between the adjacent barrierplates 131, (2) by reducing the distance s between the patterning slitsheet 150 and the substrate 400, or (3) by increasing the distance hbetween the deposition source 110 and the patterning slit sheet 150.

As described above, the shadow zone formed on the substrate 400 may bereduced by installing the barrier plates 131. Thus, the patterning slitsheet 150 can be spaced apart from the substrate 400.

It is to be understood that the thin film deposition apparatus 100 mayvary from what is described above.

Hereinafter, a method of performing thin film deposition using the firstand second blocking members 161 and 162 of the thin film depositionapparatus 100, according to the current embodiment of the presentinvention, will be described in detail.

FIGS. 5A to 5D are schematic views illustrating a method ofmanufacturing an organic light-emitting display device using a thin filmdeposition apparatus 100 of FIG. 1.

Referring to FIGS. 5A to 5D, the first and second blocking members 161and 162 of the thin film deposition apparatus 100 according to thecurrent embodiment of the present invention are disposed at edges of thesubstrate 400 so that the organic material is prevented from beingdeposited on the first and second non-deposition regions 401 and 402 ofthe substrate 400.

Specifically, an anode electrode pattern or a cathode electrode patternis formed on the edges of the substrate 400, wherein the anode electrodepattern or cathode electrode pattern is used as a terminal for producttesting or manufacturing. If the organic material is deposited on thefirst and second non-deposition regions 401 and 402, the anode electrodeor the cathode electrode may not function properly. Thus, it isdesirable to avoid deposition of organic material on the first andsecond non-deposition regions 401 and 402. As described above, however,since deposition is performed using a scanning method while thesubstrate 400 is moved relative to the thin film deposition apparatus100 according to the current embodiment of the present invention, it isnot easy to prevent the organic material from being deposited on thefirst and second non-deposition regions 401 and 402 of the substrate400.

As such, in order to prevent the deposition of the organic material onthe first and second non-deposition regions 401 and 402 of the substrate400, the thin film deposition apparatus 100 according to the currentembodiment of the present invention includes the first and secondblocking members 161 and 162 disposed at the edges of the substrate 400.

Referring to FIG. 5A, the first and second blocking members 161 and 162are disposed space apart from the substrate 400, in particular, spacedapart from the surface of the substrate 400 facing the deposition source110. In this regard, the first blocking member 161 is disposed in ablocking position relative to the first non-deposition region 401 of thesubstrate 400, and the second blocking member 162 is disposed in ablocking position relative to the second non-deposition region 402 ofthe substrate 400. The first blocking member 161 and the second blockingmember 162 may be in the form of flat plates.

As described above, deposition may be continuously performed while thesubstrate 400, which is disposed such as to face the thin filmdeposition apparatus 100, is moved in the Y-axis direction. In otherwords, deposition is performed in a scanning manner while the substrate400 is moved in a direction of an arrow A in FIG. 5B. The first blockingmember 161 and the second blocking member 162 are moved in the directionof the arrow A at the same speed as that of the substrate 400. That is,the relative positions of the first and second blocking members 161 and162 to the substrate 400 are fixed. The first blocking member 161 isdisposed in a blocking position relative to the first non-depositionregion 401 of the substrate 400, and the second blocking member 162 isdisposed in a blocking position relative to the second non-depositionregion 402 of the substrate 400.

As shown in FIGS. 5A and 5B, when the first non-deposition region 401 ofthe substrate 400 is positioned to face the deposition source 110 afterthe substrate 400 is moved by a predetermined distance in the directionof the arrow A, the first blocking member 161 is disposed between thebarrier plate assembly 130 and the patterning slit sheet 150 to preventthe deposition material 115 that is vaporized in the deposition source110 from being deposited on the first non-deposition region 401.

In addition, as shown in FIG. 5C, when the second non-deposition region402 of the substrate 400 is positioned to face the deposition source 110after the substrate 400 is further moved in the direction of the arrowA, the second blocking member 162 is disposed between the barrier plateassembly 130 and the patterning slit sheet 150 to prevent the depositionmaterial 115 that is vaporized in the deposition source 110 from beingdeposited on the second non-deposition region 402.

Since the first and second blocking members 161 and 162 screen the firstand second non-deposition regions 401 and 402 of the substrate 400, theorganic material may be prevented from being deposited on the first andsecond non-deposition regions 401 and 402 of the substrate 400 withoutthe necessity of providing another structure.

As shown in FIG. 5D, according to the present embodiment, the firstblocking member 161 and the second blocking member 162 maintain a fixedposition relative to the substrate 400 after the substrate 400 and thethin film deposition apparatus 100 have moved beyond each other.Moreover, in a chamber that has a plurality of thin film depositionapparatuses, the first and second blocking members 161 and 162 continueto block the first and second non-deposition regions 401 and 402 forsubsequent deposition procedures.

Hereinafter, a method of performing thin film deposition using first andsecond blocking members 161 and 162 of a thin film deposition apparatus100 according to a modification of the current embodiment will bedescribed in detail.

FIGS. 6A to 6D are schematic views illustrating a method ofmanufacturing an organic light-emitting display device using a thin filmdeposition apparatus 100 according to the modification of the currentembodiment.

Referring to FIGS. 6A to 6D, the first and second blocking members 161and 162 of the thin film deposition apparatus 100 according tomodification of the current embodiment are disposed at edges of thesubstrate 400 so that the organic material is prevented from beingdeposited on first and second non-deposition regions 401 and 402 of thesubstrate 400. In this the embodiment of FIGS. 6A to 6D, the first andsecond blocking members 161 and 162 are not maintained in a fixedposition relative to the substrate at all time during a depositionprocess. Specifically, the first blocking member 161 and the secondblocking member 162 may be moved independently of each other, and thefirst blocking member 161 and the second blocking member 162 may bemoved independently from the substrate. This will now be described indetail below.

Since the space in a chamber (not shown) in which the thin filmdeposition apparatus 100 is disposed is limited, it is desirable thatthe space taken up by the first and second blocking members 161 and 162be minimized to improve space utilization. In this regard, if theposition of the first blocking member 161 that screens the firstnon-deposition region 401 of the substrate 400 relative to the substrate400 and the position of the second blocking member 162 that screens thesecond non-deposition region 402 of the substrate 400 relative to thesubstrate 400 are fixed, the space occupied by the first and secondblocking members 161 and 162 increases in the chamber.

Thus, in order to minimize the space occupied by the first and secondblocking members 161 and 162 in the chamber, as shown in FIGS. 6A and6D, the first blocking member 161 and the second blocking member 162 aremaintained in an overlapping position when deposition is not beingperformed on the substrate 400. That is, the first and second blockingmembers 161 and 162 are disposed to overlap each other adjacent to thesurface of the substrate 400 facing the deposition source 110.

As shown in FIG. 6B, the first blocking member 161 is moved along thefirst non-deposition region 401 of the substrate 400 at the same speedas that of the substrate 400 while the first non-deposition region 401of the substrate 400 passes over the deposition source 110 so as toprevent the deposition material 115 that is vaporized in the depositionsource 110 from being deposited on the first non-deposition region 401.That is, when the substrate 400 and the deposition source 110 arepositioned such that deposition is performed in an area of the substratewhere the first non-deposition region 401 is located, the first blockingmember 161 is maintained in a fixed position relative to the firstnon-deposition region 401. The second blocking member 162 is moved so asto not be positioned between the deposition source 110 and the substrate400. As shown in FIG. 6C, the second blocking member 162 is moved alongthe second non-deposition region 402 of the substrate 400 at the samespeed as that of the substrate 400 while the second non-depositionregion 402 of the substrate 400 passes over the deposition source 110 soas to prevent the deposition material 115 that is vaporized in thedeposition source 110 from being deposited on the second non-depositionregion 402. That is, when the substrate 400 and the deposition source110 are positioned such that deposition is performed in an area of thesubstrate where the second non-deposition region 402 is located, thesecond blocking member 162is maintained in a fixed position relative tothe second non-deposition region 402. The first blocking member 161 maybe moved after deposition has been performed in an area of the substratewhere the first non-deposition region 401 is located, but at such atime, the first blocking member is not moved to be positioned betweenthe deposition source 110 and the substrate 400. That is, positions ofthe first blocking member 161 and the second blocking member 162relative to each other continuously change, and the positions of thefirst blocking member 161 and the second blocking member 162 relative tothe substrate 400 also continuously change such that the first blockingmember 161 and the second blocking member 162 perform their respectiveblocking functions but do not take up as much space when deposition anarea including the first deposition region 401 or second depositionregion 402 is not being performed.

In this regard, the cross-sections of the first and second blockingmembers 161 and 162 may have a U shape in order to prevent thedeposition material 115 from being deposited on the first and secondnon-deposition regions 401 and 402 by blocking the deposition material115 incident from the side of the first and second blocking members 161and 162 from reaching the first and second non-deposition regions 401and 402.

However, as described above, in order to minimize the space occupied bythe first and second blocking members 161 and 162 in the chamber, atleast one side of one of the first and second blocking members 161 and162 may be open. That is, as shown in FIGS. 6A to 6D, the first blockingmember 161 may have a U-shaped cross-section, and the second blockingmember 162 may have an L-shaped cross-section so that one side of thesecond blocking member 162 is open. Due to the configurations of thefirst and second blocking members 161 and 162, the first and secondblocking members 161 and 162 may be overlapped or nested with each otherwhen deposition is not being performed on the substrate 400. As shown inFIG. 6D, the first and second blocking members 161 and 162 may bereturned to an overlapping position when deposition has finished.Moreover, in a chamber that has a plurality of thin film depositionapparatuses, the first and second blocking members 161 and 162 may berepositioned to the starting position shown in FIG. 6A to block thefirst and second non-deposition regions 401 and 402 for subsequentdeposition procedures.

Since the first and second non-deposition regions 401 and 402 arescreened by the first and second blocking members 161 and 162, theorganic material may be prevented from being deposited on the first andsecond non-deposition regions 401 and 402 of the substrate 400 withoutthe necessity of providing another structure. In addition, the pathwayof the first and second blocking members 161 and 162 may be reduced, andspace utilization in the chamber may be improved.

FIG. 7 is a schematic perspective view of a thin film depositionapparatus according to another embodiment of the present invention.

Referring to FIG. 7, the thin film deposition apparatus 500 according tothe current embodiment of the present invention includes a depositionsource 510, a deposition source nozzle unit 520, a first barrier plateassembly 530, a second barrier plate assembly 540, a patterning slitsheet 550, and first and second blocking members 561 and 562.

Although a chamber is not illustrated in FIG. 7 for convenience ofexplanation, all the components of the thin film deposition apparatus500 may be disposed within a chamber that is maintained at anappropriate degree of vacuum. The chamber is maintained at anappropriate vacuum in order to allow a deposition material 115 to movein a straight direction.

The substrate 400, which constitutes a deposition target on which thedeposition material 515 is to be deposited, is disposed in the chamber.The deposition source 510 that contains and heats the depositionmaterial 515 is disposed in the chamber at a side of the thin filmdeposition apparatus 500 that is opposite to and spaced apart from thesubstrate 400.

Since the deposition source 510 and the patterning slit sheet 550 arethe same as those described with reference to FIG. 1, the descriptionthereof will not repeated herein. In addition, since the first barrierplate assembly 530 is the same as that described with reference to FIG.1, the description thereof will not be repeated herein.

The second barrier plate assembly 540 is disposed at a side of the firstbarrier plate assembly 530. The second barrier plate assembly 540includes a plurality of second barrier plates 541, and a second barrierplate frame 542 that covers sides of the second barrier plates 541.

The plurality of second barrier plates 541 may be arranged parallel toeach other at equal intervals in the X-axis direction. In addition, eachof the second barrier plates 541 may be formed to extend in the YZ planein FIG. 7, i.e., perpendicular to the X-axis direction.

The plurality of first barrier plates 531 and second barrier plates 541arranged as described above partition the space between the depositionsource nozzle unit 520 and the patterning slit sheet 550. In the thinfilm deposition apparatus 500 according to the current embodiment of thepresent invention, the deposition space is divided by the first barrierplates 531 and the second barrier plates 541 into sub-deposition spacesthat respectively correspond to the deposition source nozzles 521through which the deposition material 515 is discharged.

The second barrier plates 541 may be disposed to correspond respectivelyto the first barrier plates 531. In other words, the second barrierplates 541 may be respectively disposed to be parallel to and to be onthe same plane as the first barrier plates 531. Each pair of thecorresponding first and second barrier plates 531 and 541 may be locatedon the same plane. Although the first barrier plates 531 and the secondbarrier plates 541 are respectively illustrated as having the samethickness in the X-axis direction, the present invention is not limitedthereto. In other words, the second barrier plates 541, which may beaccurately aligned with the patterning slit sheet 551, may be formed tobe relatively thin, whereas the first barrier plates 531, which do notneed to be precisely aligned with the patterning slit sheet 550, may beformed to be relatively thick. This makes it easier to manufacture thethin film deposition apparatus 500.

The first and second blocking members 561 and 562 of the thin filmdeposition apparatus 500 according to the present embodiment are movedalong with the substrate 400 and screen first and second non-depositionregions 401 and 402 of the substrate 400 so as to prevent the organicmaterial from being deposited on the first and second non-depositionregions 401 and 402 of the substrate 400. The first and second blockingmembers 561 and 562 are also the same as the first and second blockingmembers 161 and 162 described with FIGS. 5A to 5D and 6A to 6D, and thusthe description thereof will not repeated herein.

FIG. 8 is a cross-sectional view of an active-matrix organiclight-emitting display device manufactured by using a thin filmdeposition apparatus according to an embodiment of the presentinvention. It is to be understood that where is stated herein that onelayer is “formed on” or “disposed on” a second layer, the first layermay be formed or disposed directly on the second layer or there may beintervening layers between the first layer and the second layer.Further, as used herein, the term “formed on” is used with the samemeaning as “located on” or “disposed on” and is not meant to be limitingregarding any particular fabrication process.

Referring to FIG. 8, a buffer layer 51 is formed on a substrate 50formed of glass or plastic. A TFT and an OLED are formed on the bufferlayer 51.

An active layer 52 having a predetermined pattern is formed on thebuffer layer 51. A gate insulating layer 53 is formed on the activelayer 52, and a gate electrode 54 is formed in a predetermined region ofthe gate insulating layer 53. The gate electrode 54 is connected to agate line (not shown) that applies a TFT ON/OFF signal. An interlayerinsulating layer 55 is formed on the gate electrode 54. Source/drainelectrodes 56 and 57 are formed such as to contact source/drain regions52 a and 52 c, respectively, of the active layer 52 through contactholes. A passivation layer 58 is formed of SiO₂, SiN_(x), etc. on thesource/drain electrodes 56 and 57. A planarization layer 59 is formed ofan organic material, such as acryl, polyimide, benzocyclobutene (BCB),etc., on the passivation layer 58. A pixel electrode 61, which functionsas an anode of the OLED, is formed on the planarization layer 59, and apixel defining layer 60 formed of an organic material is formed to coverthe pixel electrode 61. An opening is formed in the pixel defining layer60, and then an organic layer 62 is formed on a surface of the pixeldefining layer 60 and on a surface of the pixel electrode 61 exposedthrough the opening. The organic layer 62 includes an emission layer.The present invention is not limited to the structure of the organiclight-emitting display device described above, and various structures oforganic light-emitting display devices may be applied to the variousaspects of the present invention.

The OLED displays predetermined image information by emitting red, greenand blue light as current flows. The OLED includes the pixel electrode61, which is connected to the drain electrode 56 of the TFT and to whicha positive power voltage is applied, a counter electrode 63, which isformed so as to cover the entire sub-pixel and to which a negative powervoltage is applied, and the organic layer 62, which is disposed betweenthe pixel electrode 61 and the counter electrode 63 to emit light.

The pixel electrode 61 and the counter electrode 63 are insulated fromeach other by the organic layer 62, and respectively apply voltages ofopposite polarities to the organic layer 62 to induce light emission inthe organic layer 62.

The organic layer 62 may include a low-molecular weight organic layer ora high-molecular weight organic layer. When a low-molecular weightorganic layer is used as the organic layer 62, the organic layer 62 mayhave a single or multi-layer structure including at least one selectedfrom the group consisting of a hole injection layer (HIL), a holetransport layer (HTL), an emission layer (EML), an electron transportlayer (ETL), an electron injection layer (EIL), etc. Examples ofavailable organic materials include copper phthalocyanine (CuPc),N,N′-di(naphthalene-1-yl)-N,N′-diphenyl-benzidine (NPB),tris-8-hydroxyquinoline aluminum (Alq3), etc. The low-molecular weightorganic layer may be formed by vacuum deposition.

When a high-molecular weight organic layer is used as the organic layer62, the organic layer 62 may mostly have a structure including a HTL andan EML. In this case, the HTL may be formed ofpoly(ethylenedioxythiophene) (PEDOT), and the EML may be formed ofpolyphenylenevinylenes (PPVs) or polyfluorenes. The HTL and the EML maybe formed by screen printing, inkjet printing, or the like.

The organic layer 62 is not limited to the organic layers describedabove, and may be embodied in various ways.

The pixel electrode 61 may function as an anode, and the counterelectrode 63 may function as a cathode. Alternatively, the pixelelectrode 61 may function as a cathode, and the counter electrode 63 mayfunction as an anode.

The pixel electrode 61 may be formed as a transparent electrode or areflective electrode. Such a transparent electrode may be formed ofindium tin oxide (ITO), indium zinc oxide (IZO), zinc oxide (ZnO), orindium oxide (In₂O₃). Such a reflective electrode may be formed byforming a reflective layer from silver (Ag), magnesium (Mg), aluminum(Al), platinum (Pt), palladium (Pd), gold (Au), nickel (Ni), neodymium(Nd), iridium (Ir), chromium (Cr) or a compound thereof and forming alayer of ITO, IZO, ZnO, or In₂O₃ on the reflective layer.

The counter electrode 63 may be formed as a transparent electrode or areflective electrode. When the counter electrode 63 is formed as atransparent electrode, the counter electrode 63 functions as a cathode.To this end, such a transparent electrode may be formed by depositing ametal having a low work function, such as lithium (Li), calcium (Ca),lithium fluoride/calcium (LiF/Ca), lithium fluoride/aluminum (LiF/Al),aluminum (Al), silver (Ag), magnesium (Mg), or a compound thereof on asurface of the organic layer 62 and forming an auxiliary electrode layeror a bus electrode line thereon from a transparent electrode formingmaterial, such as ITO, IZO, ZnO, In₂O₃, or the like. When the counterelectrode 63 is formed as a reflective electrode, the reflective layermay be formed by depositing Li, Ca, LiF/Ca, LiF/Al, Al, Ag, Mg, or acompound thereof on the entire surface of the organic layer 62.

In the organic light-emitting display apparatus described above, theorganic layer 62 including the emission layer may be formed by using anyof the embodiments of a thin film deposition apparatus described hereinor by using a chamber including a plurality of such thin film depositionapparatuses. The thin film deposition apparatus may also be used to forman organic layer or inorganic layer of an organic TFT, and other layersformed of various material.

It is to be understood that the organic light-emitting display devicemay vary from what is described above.

FIG. 9 is a schematic perspective view of a thin film depositionapparatus according to another embodiment of the present invention, FIG.10 is a schematic side view of the thin film deposition apparatus ofFIG. 9, and FIG. 11 is a schematic plan view of the thin film depositionapparatus of FIG. 9.

Referring to FIGS. 9, 10, and 11, the thin film deposition apparatus 900according to the current embodiment of the present invention includes adeposition source 910, a deposition source nozzle unit 920, a patterningslit sheet 950, and blocking members 961 and 962.

Although a chamber is not illustrated in FIGS. 9, 10 and 11 forconvenience of explanation, all the components of the thin filmdeposition apparatus 900 may be disposed within a chamber that ismaintained at an appropriate degree of vacuum. The chamber is maintainedat an appropriate vacuum in order to allow a deposition material to movein a substantially straight line through the thin film depositionapparatus 100.

In particular, in order to deposit a deposition material 915 that isemitted from the deposition source 910 and is discharged through thedeposition source nozzle unit 920 and the patterning slit sheet 950,onto a substrate 400 in a desired pattern, it is required to maintain achamber (not shown) in a high-vacuum state as in a deposition methodusing a fine metal mask (FMM). In addition, the temperature of thepatterning slit sheet 950 have to be sufficiently lower than thetemperature of the deposition source 910. In this regard, thetemperature of the patterning slit sheet 950 may be about 100° C. orless. This is because thermal expansion of the patterning slit sheet 950may be minimized when the temperature of the patterning slit sheet 950is sufficiently low.

The substrate 400, which constitutes a deposition target on which adeposition material 915 is to be deposited, is disposed in the chamber.The substrate 400 may be a substrate for flat panel displays. A largesubstrate, such as a mother glass, for manufacturing a plurality of flatpanel displays, may be used as the substrate 400. Other substrates mayalso be employed.

In the current embodiment of the present invention, deposition may beperformed while the substrate 400 and the thin film deposition assembly900 are moved relative to each other.

In particular, in the conventional FMM deposition method, the size ofthe FMM has to be equal to the size of a substrate. Thus, the size ofthe FMM has to be increased when performing deposition on a largersubstrate. However, it is difficult to manufacture a large FMM and toextend an FMM to be accurately aligned with a pattern.

In order to overcome this problem, in the thin film deposition assembly900 according to the current embodiment of the present invention,deposition may be performed while the thin film deposition assembly 900and the substrate 400 are moved relative to each other. In other words,deposition may be continuously performed while the substrate 400, whichis disposed such as to face the thin film deposition assembly 900, ismoved in a Y-axis direction. In other words, deposition is performed ina scanning manner while the substrate 400 is moved in a direction of anarrow A in FIG. 9. Although the substrate 400 is illustrated as beingmoved in the Y-axis direction in FIG. 9 when deposition is performed,the present invention is not limited thereto. Deposition may beperformed while the thin film deposition assembly 900 is moved in theY-axis direction, whereas the substrate 400 is fixed.

Thus, in the thin film deposition assembly 900 according to the currentembodiment of the present invention, the patterning slit sheet 950 maybe significantly smaller than an FMM used in a conventional depositionmethod. In other words, in the thin film deposition assembly 900according to the current embodiment of the present invention, depositionis continuously performed, i.e., in a scanning manner while thesubstrate 400 is moved in the Y-axis direction. Thus, lengths of thepatterning slit sheet 950 in the X-axis and Y-axis directions may besignificantly less than the lengths of the substrate 400 in the X-axisand Y-axis directions. As described above, since the patterning slitsheet 950 may be formed to be significantly smaller than an FMM used ina conventional deposition method, it is relatively easy to manufacturethe patterning slit sheet 950 used in an embodiment of the presentinvention. In other words, using the patterning slit sheet 950, which issmaller than an FMM used in a conventional deposition method, is moreconvenient in all processes, including etching and subsequent otherprocesses, such as precise extension, welding, moving, and cleaningprocesses, compared to the conventional deposition method using thelarger FMM. This is more advantageous for a relatively large displaydevice.

In order to perform deposition while the thin film deposition assembly900 or the substrate 400 is moved relative to each other as describedabove, the thin film deposition assembly 900 and the substrate 400 maybe separated from each other by a predetermined distance. This will bedescribed later in detail.

The deposition source 910 that contains and heats the depositionmaterial 915 is disposed in an opposite side of the chamber to that inwhich the substrate 400 is disposed. As the deposition material 915contained in the deposition source 910 is vaporized, the depositionmaterial 915 is deposited on the substrate 400.

In particular, the deposition source 910 includes a crucible 911 that isfilled with the deposition material 915, and a heater 912 that heats thecrucible 911 to vaporize the deposition material 915, which is containedin the crucible 911, towards a side of the crucible 911, and inparticular, towards the deposition source nozzle unit 920.

The deposition source nozzle unit 920 is disposed at a side of thedeposition source 910, and in particular, at the side of the depositionsource 910 facing the substrate 400. The deposition source nozzle unit920 includes a plurality of deposition source nozzles 921 arranged atequal intervals in the Y-axis direction, i.e., the scanning direction ofthe substrate 400. The deposition material 915 that is vaporized in thedeposition source 910, passes through the deposition source nozzle unit920 towards the substrate 400. As described above, when the plurality ofdeposition source nozzles 921 are formed on the deposition source nozzleunit 920 in the Y-axis direction, that is, the scanning direction of thesubstrate 400, a size of the pattern formed by the deposition material915 that is discharged through each of patterning slits 951 in thepatterning slit sheet 950 is only affected by the size of one depositionsource nozzle 921, that is, it may be considered that one depositionnozzle 921 exists in the X-axis direction, and thus there is no shadowzone on the substrate. In addition, since the plurality of depositionsource nozzles 921 are formed in the scanning direction of the substrate400, even there is a difference between fluxes of the deposition sourcenozzles 921, the difference may be compensated and deposition uniformitymay be maintained constantly.

The patterning slit sheet 950 and a frame 955 in which the patterningslit sheet 950 is bound are disposed between the deposition source 910and the substrate 400. The frame 955 may be formed in a lattice shape,similar to a window frame. The patterning slit sheet 950 is bound insidethe frame 955. The patterning slit sheet 950 includes a plurality ofpatterning slits 951 arranged in the X-axis direction. The depositionmaterial 915 that is vaporized in the deposition source 910, passesthrough the deposition source nozzle unit 920 and the patterning slitsheet 950 towards the substrate 400. The patterning slit sheet 950 maybe manufactured by etching, which is the same method as used in aconventional method of manufacturing an FMM, and in particular, astriped FMM. Here, the total number of patterning slits 951 may begreater than the total number of deposition source nozzles 921.

The deposition source 910 (and the deposition source nozzle unit 920coupled to the deposition source 910) and the patterning slit sheet 950may be formed to be separated from each other by a predetermineddistance. Alternatively, the deposition source 910 (and the depositionsource nozzle unit 920 coupled to the deposition source 910) and thepatterning slit sheet 950 may be connected to each other by a connectionmember 935. That is, the deposition source 910, the deposition sourcenozzle unit 920, and the patterning slit sheet 950 may be formedintegrally with each other by being connected to each other via theconnection member 935. The connection member 935 guides the depositionmaterial 915, which is discharged through the deposition source nozzles921, to move straight, not to flow in the X-axis direction. In FIGS. 9through 11, the connection members 935 are formed on left and rightsides of the deposition source 910, the deposition source nozzle unit920, and the patterning slit sheet 950 to guide the deposition material915 not to flow in the X-axis direction, however, the present inventionis not limited thereto. That is, the connection member 935 may be formedas a sealed type of a box shape to guide flow of the deposition material115 in both the X-axis and the Y-axis directions.

As described above, the thin film deposition apparatus 900 according tothe current embodiment of the present invention performs depositionwhile being moved relative to the substrate 400. In order to move thethin film deposition apparatus 900 relative to the substrate 400, thepatterning slit sheet 950 is separated from the substrate 400 by apredetermined distance.

In particular, in a conventional deposition method using an FMM,deposition is performed with the FMM in close contact with a substratein order to prevent formation of a shadow zone on the substrate.However, when the FMM is used in close contact with the substrate, thecontact may cause defects. In addition, in the conventional depositionmethod, the size of the mask has to be the same as the size of thesubstrate since the mask cannot be moved relative to the substrate.Thus, the size of the mask has to be increased as display devices becomelarger. However, it is not easy to manufacture such a large mask.

In order to overcome this and/or other problems, in the thin filmdeposition apparatus 900 according to the current embodiment of thepresent invention, the patterning slit sheet 950 is disposed to beseparated from the substrate 400 by a predetermined distance.

As described above, according to the aspects of the present invention, amask is formed to be smaller than a substrate, and deposition isperformed while the mask is moved relative to the substrate. Thus, themask can be easily manufactured. In addition, defects caused due to thecontact between a substrate and an FMM, which occurs in the conventionaldeposition method, may be prevented. In addition, since it isunnecessary to use the FMM in close contact with the substrate during adeposition process, the manufacturing speed may be improved.

In this regard, in the thin film deposition apparatus 900 according tothe current embodiment of the present invention, the first and secondblocking members 961 and 962 are disposed to move along with thesubstrate 400 and screen the first and second non-deposition regions 401and 402 of the substrate 400 so that a deposition material 915 isprevented from being deposited on the first and second non-depositionregions 401 and 402 of the substrate 400. Since this has been describedwith reference to the previous embodiment, the description thereof willnot be repeated herein.

FIG. 12 is a schematic perspective view of a thin film depositionapparatus according to another embodiment of the present invention.Referring to FIG. 12, the thin film deposition apparatus according tothe current embodiment of the present invention includes a depositionsource 910, a deposition source nozzle unit 920, and a patterning slitsheet 950. In particular, the deposition source 910 includes a crucible911 that is filled with the deposition material 915, and a heater 912that heats the crucible 911 to vaporize the deposition material 915,which is contained in the crucible 911, towards a side of the crucible111, and in particular, towards the deposition source nozzle unit 920.The deposition source nozzle unit 920, which has a planar shape, isdisposed at a side of the deposition source 910. The deposition sourcenozzle unit 920 includes a plurality of deposition source nozzles 921arranged in the Y-axis direction. The patterning slit sheet 950 and aframe 955 are further disposed between the deposition source 910 and thesubstrate 400, and the patterning slit sheet 950 includes a plurality ofpatterning slits 951 arranged in the X-axis direction. In addition, thedeposition source 910, the deposition source nozzle unit 920, and thepatterning slit sheet 950 are connected to each other by the connectionmember 935.

In the current embodiment of the present invention, the plurality ofdeposition source nozzles 921 formed on the deposition source nozzleunit 920 are tilted at a predetermined angle. In particular, thedeposition source nozzles 921 may include deposition source nozzles 921a and 921 b which are arranged in two rows, which are alternatelyarranged with each other. Here, the deposition source nozzles 921 a and921 b may be tilted at a predetermined angle on an X-Z plane.

Therefore, in the current embodiment of the present invention, thedeposition source nozzles 921 a and 921 b are arranged in tilted statesat a predetermined angle. Here, the deposition source nozzles 921 a in afirst row may be tilted at the predetermined angle toward the depositionnozzles 921 b in a second row, and the deposition source nozzles 921 bin the second row may be tilted at the predetermined angle toward thedeposition source nozzles 921 a in the first row. That is, thedeposition source nozzles 921 a arranged in the row at the left side ofthe patterning slit sheet 950 are arranged to face the right side of thepatterning slit sheet 950, and the deposition source nozzles 921 barranged in the row at the right side of the patterning slit sheet 950are arranged to face the left side of the patterning slit sheet 950.

FIG. 13 is a graph schematically illustrating a distribution pattern ofa deposition film formed on a substrate when a deposition source nozzleis not tilted, in a thin film deposition apparatus according to anembodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 14 is a graphschematically illustrating a distribution pattern of a deposition filmformed on a substrate when a deposition source nozzle is tilted, in athin film deposition apparatus according to an embodiment of the presentinvention. Comparing the graphs of FIGS. 13 and 14 with each other,thickness of both end portions of the deposition film formed on thesubstrate when the deposition source nozzles are tilted is relativelygreater than that of the deposition film formed on the substrate whenthe deposition source nozzles are not tilted, and thus, the uniformityof the deposition film is improved.

Therefore, the deposition amount of the deposition material may beadjusted so that a thickness difference between the center portion andend portions of the deposition film formed on the substrate may bereduced and the entire thickness of the deposition film may be constant,and moreover, the efficiency of utilizing the deposition material may beimproved.

In this regard, in the thin film deposition apparatus 900 according tothe current embodiment of the present invention, the first and secondblocking members 961 and 962 are disposed to move along with thesubstrate 400 and screen the first and second non-deposition regions 401and 402 of the substrate 400 so that an deposition material 915 isprevented from being deposited on the first and second non-depositionregions 401 and 402 of the substrate 400. Since this has been describedwith reference to the previous embodiment, the description thereof willnot be repeated herein.

As described above, the thin film deposition apparatus according to theaspects of the present invention may be easily manufactured and may besimply applied to produce large substrates on a mass scale. The thinfilm deposition apparatus may improve manufacturing yield and depositionefficiency and may allow deposition materials to be reused.

Although a few embodiments of the present invention have been shown anddescribed, it would be appreciated by those skilled in the art thatchanges may be made in this embodiment without departing from theprinciples and spirit of the invention, the scope of which is defined inthe claims and their equivalents.

What is claimed is:
 1. A thin film deposition apparatus that forms athin film on a substrate, the apparatus comprising: a deposition sourcethat discharges a deposition material; a deposition source nozzle unitthat is disposed at a side of the deposition source and comprises aplurality of deposition source nozzles arranged in a first direction; apatterning slit sheet that is disposed opposite to and spaced apart fromthe deposition source nozzle unit and comprises a plurality ofpatterning slits arranged in the first direction; a barrier plateassembly that is disposed between the deposition source nozzle unit and,and comprises a plurality of barrier plates in the first direction thatpartition a space between the deposition source nozzle unit and thepatterning slit sheet into a plurality of sub-deposition spaces; and ablocking member that is disposed between the substrate and thedeposition source and that is spaced apart from the substrate, whereinthe thin film deposition apparatus is spaced apart from the substrate bya predetermined distance, the substrate and the thin film depositionapparatus move relative to each other, and when the substrate and thethin film deposition apparatus are moved relative to each other, theblocking member is moved along with the substrate to be positioned toscreen at least one portion of the substrate.
 2. The thin filmdeposition apparatus of claim 1, wherein the blocking member screens anon-deposition region of the substrate.
 3. The thin film depositionapparatus of claim 1, wherein the blocking member screens edges of thesubstrate.
 4. The thin film deposition apparatus of claim 1, wherein theblocking member is positioned to move between the barrier plate assemblyand the pattern slit sheet.
 5. The thin film deposition apparatus ofclaim 1, wherein the blocking member comprises a first blocking memberthat screens a first non-deposition region formed at a first end of thesubstrate and a second blocking member that screens a secondnon-deposition region formed at a second end of the substrate.
 6. Thethin film deposition apparatus of claim 5, wherein the first and secondblocking members have a flat plate shape.
 7. The thin film depositionapparatus of claim 5, wherein the first and second blocking members aremoved along with the substrate such that the first blocking member isdisposed to block deposition on the first non-deposition region, and thesecond blocking member is disposed to block deposition on the secondnon-deposition region.
 8. The thin film deposition apparatus of claim 7,wherein the first and second blocking members are moved at the samespeed as that of the substrate.
 9. The thin film deposition apparatus ofclaim 7, wherein positions of the first and second blocking members withrespect to the substrate are constantly maintained.
 10. The thin filmdeposition apparatus of claim 5, wherein the first and second blockingmembers have a U-shaped cross-section.
 11. The thin film depositionapparatus of claim 5, wherein one of the first and second blockingmembers has a U-shaped cross-section, and the other of the first andsecond blocking members has an L-shaped cross-section.
 12. The thin filmdeposition apparatus of claim 11, wherein the first and second blockingmembers overlap with each other when deposition is not being performedon the substrate.
 13. The thin film deposition apparatus of claim 5,wherein the first and second blocking members are moved along with thesubstrate such that the first blocking member screens the firstnon-deposition region while the first non-deposition region is movedbetween the blocking plate assembly and the patterning slit sheet, andthe second blocking member screens the second non-deposition regionwhile the second non-deposition region is moved between the blockingplate assembly and the patterning slit sheet.
 14. The thin filmdeposition apparatus of claim 13, wherein the first blocking member ismoved at the same speed as that of the substrate while the firstnon-deposition region is moved between the barrier plate assembly andthe patterning slit sheet, and the second blocking member is moved atthe same speed as that of the substrate while the second non-depositionregion is moved between the barrier plate assembly and the patterningslit sheet.
 15. The thin film deposition apparatus of claim 13, whereina position of the first blocking member with respect to the substrate isconstantly maintained while the first non-deposition region is movedbetween the barrier plate assembly and the patterning slit sheet, and aposition of the second blocking member with respect to the substrate isconstantly maintained while the second non-deposition region is movedbetween the barrier plate assembly and the patterning slit sheet. 16.The thin film deposition apparatus of claim 1, wherein the patterningslit sheet is smaller than the substrate.
 17. The thin film depositionapparatus of claim 1, wherein each of the plurality of barrier platesextends in a second direction that is substantially perpendicular to thefirst direction.
 18. The thin film deposition apparatus of claim 1,wherein each of the barrier plate assemblies comprises a first barrierplate assembly comprising a plurality of first barrier plates, and asecond barrier plate assembly comprising a plurality of second barrierplates.
 19. The thin film deposition apparatus of claim 1, wherein thedeposition material contained in the deposition source of thin filmdeposition apparatus is continuously deposited on the substrate whilethe substrate is moved relative to the thin film deposition apparatus.20. The thin film deposition apparatus of claim 1, wherein the thin filmdeposition apparatus and the substrate move relative to each other alonga plane parallel to a surface of the substrate on which the depositionmaterials are deposited.
 21. A thin film deposition apparatus forforming a thin film on a substrate, the apparatus comprising: adeposition source that discharges a deposition material; a depositionsource nozzle unit that is disposed at a side of the deposition sourceand comprises a plurality of deposition source nozzles arranged in afirst direction; a patterning slit sheet that is disposed opposite tothe deposition source nozzle unit and comprises a plurality ofpatterning slits arranged in a second direction perpendicular to thefirst direction; and a blocking member that is disposed between thesubstrate and the deposition source, wherein a deposition is performedwhile the substrate and the thin film deposition apparatus move relativeto each other in the first direction, the deposition source, thedeposition source nozzle unit, and the patterning slit sheet are formedintegrally with each other, and when a deposition is performed, theblocking member moves along with the substrate to be positioned toscreen at least one portion of the substrate.
 22. The thin filmdeposition apparatus of claim 21, wherein the blocking member screens anon-deposition region of the substrate.
 23. The thin film depositionapparatus of claim 21, wherein the blocking member screens edges of thesubstrate.
 24. The thin film deposition apparatus of claim 21, whereinthe blocking member is positioned to move between the barrier plateassembly and the pattern slit sheet.
 25. The thin film depositionapparatus of claim 21, wherein the blocking member comprises a firstblocking member that screens a first non-deposition region formed at afirst end of the substrate and a second blocking member that screens asecond non-deposition region formed at a second end of the substrate.26. The thin film deposition apparatus of claim 25, wherein the firstand second blocking members have a flat plate shape.
 27. The thin filmdeposition apparatus of claim 25, wherein the first and second blockingmembers are moved along with the substrate such that the first blockingmember is disposed to block deposition on the first non-depositionregion, and the second blocking member is disposed to block depositionon the second non-deposition region.
 28. The thin film depositionapparatus of claim 27, wherein the first and second blocking members aremoved at the same speed as that of the substrate.
 29. The thin filmdeposition apparatus of claim 27, wherein positions of the first andsecond blocking members with respect to the substrate are constantlymaintained.
 30. The thin film deposition apparatus of claim 25, whereinthe first and second blocking members have a U-shaped cross-section. 31.The thin film deposition apparatus of claim 25, wherein one of the firstand second blocking members has a U-shaped cross-section, and the otherof the first and second blocking members has an L-shaped cross-section.32. The thin film deposition apparatus of claim 31, wherein the firstand second blocking members are overlap with each other when depositionis not being performed on the substrate.
 33. The thin film depositionapparatus of claim 25, wherein the first and second blocking members aremoved along with the substrate such that the first blocking memberscreens the first non-deposition region while the first non-depositionregion is moved between the blocking plate assembly and the patterningslit sheet, and the second blocking member screens the secondnon-deposition region while the second non-deposition region is movedbetween the blocking plate assembly and the patterning slit sheet. 34.The thin film deposition apparatus of claim 33, wherein the firstblocking member is moved at the same speed as that of the substratewhile the first non-deposition region is moved between the barrier plateassembly and the patterning slit sheet, and the second blocking memberis moved at the same speed as that of the substrate while the secondnon-deposition region is moved between the barrier plate assembly andthe patterning slit sheet.
 35. The thin film deposition apparatus ofclaim 33, wherein a position of the first blocking member with respectto the substrate is constantly maintained while the first non-depositionregion is moved between the barrier plate assembly and the patterningslit sheet, and a position of the second blocking member with respect tothe substrate is constantly maintained while the second non-depositionregion is moved between the barrier plate assembly and the patterningslit sheet.
 36. The thin film deposition apparatus of claim 21, whereinthe deposition source and the deposition source nozzle unit, and thepatterning slit sheet are connected to each other by a connectionmember.
 37. The thin film deposition apparatus of claim 36, wherein theconnection member guides movement of the discharged deposition material.38. The thin film deposition apparatus of claim 36, wherein theconnection member seals a space between the deposition source and thedeposition source nozzle unit, and the patterning slit sheet.
 39. Thethin film deposition apparatus of claim 21, wherein the thin filmdeposition apparatus is spaced apart from the substrate by apredetermined distance.
 40. The thin film deposition apparatus of claim21, wherein the deposition material discharged from the thin filmdeposition apparatus is continuously deposited on the substrate whilethe substrate is moved relative to the thin film deposition apparatus inthe first direction.
 41. The thin film deposition apparatus of claim 21,wherein the patterning slit sheet of the thin film deposition apparatusis smaller than the substrate.
 42. The thin film deposition apparatus ofclaim 21, wherein the plurality of deposition source nozzles are tiltedat a predetermined angle.
 43. The thin film deposition apparatus ofclaim 42, wherein the plurality of deposition source nozzles comprisedeposition source nozzles arranged in two rows arranged in the firstdirection, and the deposition source nozzles in each of the two rows aretilted at the predetermined angle toward a corresponding depositionsource nozzle of the other of the two rows.
 44. The thin film depositionapparatus of claim 42, wherein the plurality of deposition sourcenozzles comprise deposition source nozzles arranged in two rows arrangedin the first direction, the deposition source nozzles arranged in a rowlocated at a first side of the patterning slit sheet are arranged toface a second side of the patterning slit sheet, and the depositionsource nozzles arranged in the other row located at the second side ofthe patterning slit sheet are arranged to face the first side of thepatterning slit sheet.
 45. A thin film deposition apparatus that forms athin film on a substrate, the apparatus comprising: a deposition sourcethat discharges a deposition material; a patterning slit sheet that isdisposed opposite to and spaced apart from the deposition source andcomprises a plurality of patterning slits arranged in the firstdirection through which the deposition material travels to be depositedon the substrate; a blocking member that is positioned between thesubstrate and the deposition source to screen a non-deposition region ofthe substrate, wherein the substrate and the thin film depositionapparatus move relative to each other during a deposition process, andwherein when the substrate and the thin film deposition apparatus aremoved relative to each other during the deposition process, the blockingmember is moved between the deposition source and the patterning slitsheet to maintain a screening position with respect to thenon-deposition region of the substrate.
 46. The thin film depositionapparatus of claim 45, wherein the blocking member comprises a firstblocking member that screens a first non-deposition region formed at afirst end of the substrate and a second blocking member that screens asecond non-deposition region formed at a second end of the substrate.47. The thin film deposition apparatus of claim 46, wherein the firstand second blocking members maintain a screening position with respectto the first and second non-deposition regions of the substrate whilethe substrate and thin film deposition apparatus are moved relative toeach other throughout a deposition process.
 48. The thin film depositionapparatus of claim 46, wherein during a deposition process, the firstblocking member maintains a screening position with respect to the firstnon-deposition region of the substrate only when the thin filmdeposition apparatus and the substrate are positioned relative to eachother such that deposition material is discharged towards the firstnon-deposition region and wherein the second blocking member maintains ascreening position with respect to the second non-deposition region ofthe substrate only when the thin film deposition apparatus and thesubstrate are positioned relative to each other such that depositionmaterial is discharged towards the second non-deposition region.
 49. Thethin film deposition apparatus of claim 48, wherein the first blockingmember and the second blocking member are positioned to overlap eachother when deposition is not being performed on the substrate.